Veteran journalist and filmmaker NS Shankar passed away

NS Shankar | Photo credit: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT

Veteran journalist and filmmaker NS Shankar passed away at the age of 67. He is survived by his son Rahul.

In the Kannada film industry, Shankar is known for his directorial debut Ulta Palta (1997), a successful comedy-drama.

Shankar, who was invited for the film’s launch in Kolar on June 27, reached his Bengali residence late at night. He died in his sleep after suffering a heart attack, sources said.

During his career in journalism spanning more than two decades, Shankar worked for leading Kannada newspapers such as Prajavani and Lankesh Patrike. His journalistic career began in 1979 with City Times and Janavani. In 1981, Shankar joined Prajavani.

He was part of the founding teams of the daily Mungaru, led by the legendary Vaddars Raghuram Shetty, and another weekly, Suddi Sangaati, led by another Mungaru hand, Indhudhar Honnapura. Shankar also worked as Senior News Editor at Lankesh Patrike until Lankesh breathed his last in 2000.

Chief Minister DK Shivakumar condoled his death saying, “NS Shankar through his writings very sensitively analyzed the realities of society and his death is an irreparable loss to journalism as well as literature.

Shankar’s move into film was boosted by the positive reception of his short film Muttisikondavan. Based on a short story by Lankesh, the film deals with caste discrimination and exposes human hypocrisy. Shankar’s industry friends, including musician V. Manohar and cinematographer Ashok Kashyap, co-produced his directorial debut, which was inspired by Shakespeare’s comedy of errors.

Ulta Palta starring Ramesh Aravind and Sanketh Kashi was a hit. The film was remade in Tamil as Ambuttu Imbuttu Embuttu (2005). Editor Guna, associate director Vijayaprasad, actor Myna and Subrahmanya Thememane were the other co-producers, making it a rare Kannada film financed by technicians. Shankar won the Karnataka State Film Award for Best Dialogues. Kashi won the Special Jury Award in the Best Actor category.

K. Puttaswamy, writer and historian, calls Shankar a “socially responsible journalist”. “His news and writings helped the downtrodden. His writings stood firmly on the side of the downtrodden,” Mr. Puttaswamy, who worked with Shankar as a journalist, told The Hindu.

Shankar has also directed serials for Doordarshan, the most notable of which are Baduku Jataka Bhandi and Kshamaya Dharitri.

He is the author of several works, including Arasu Yuga, which delves into the political life of former Chief Minister D. Deveraj Urs, and a book on the Dalit movement in Karnataka.

Shankar planned an anthology based on three stories: Lankesh’s Muttisikondavana, Pratibha Nandakumara’s Arundathi and P. Mahamuda’s 6th December. The movie was called Eega.

Published – 28 Jun 2026 21:32 IST